A Sensible Dinner - Pearlieq's Journal

[Mykelogan]

Hi Pearlieq!

Sorry you are not feeling well!!! I hope you recover soon!
On a separate note, how does 1pm on the 7th at Earl of Sandwich sound for a WISH meet to you?

I agree with Lesli. I think it was natural to feel the way you do at the collection center with that leadership role thrust upon. I do suppose there is some solace in the fact that people see those leadership characterics and abilities in you! Either way, what a great thing you are doing giving of your time that way!!!

I hope that you feel better as the evening approaches!!!
Mike

 

[toystoryduo]

Hey pearlieq!

Here is the link to the details of the WISH meet in December.... Hope you can come!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=910106

Have a great day!

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning, Pearlieq!

I hope you are feeling much better today.

Take your victories where you can and learn from the slips. Although, I just had to laugh about pulling off the resealable lids and turning the can upside down. That was pretty good.

Take care and have a good day!

 

[pearlieq]

9/13/05

8:30am

--1 bowl raisin bran crunch w/milk
--1 whole wheat bagel with margarine and a bit of jelly

I feel a little better today. I'm still tired and congested, but at least my throat doesn't hurt anymore and my nose isn't running as much.

I have absolutely no motivation today, to eat well or be productive. I have a feeling the most taxing thing I'm going to do today is watch The Price Is Right. I hope they have the mountain climber game today. That's my favorite!

11:00am

--light ranch dip
--baked tortilla chips

2:00pm

--2 boca chick'n burgers
--2 oz pringles

4:00pm

--1 cup nsa ice cream
--raspberry sauce

7:00pm

--5 toasted ravioli
--1/2 portion manicotti
--1/2 piece garlic bread

Well, fun new update. I can't taste anything, which I assume saved me some calories at dinner as it just didn't seem worth it to eat much.

9:15pm

--2 bites vanilla cake
--1 sm apple fritter

I wanted something sweet, but I didn't get too far because I still can't taste anything! It's amazing how much our sense of taste depends on our sense of smell!

On another note, I'm absolutely in love with Kanye West's new single "Gold Digger"! It's an hysterical sendup of sexual economics and is very interestingly constructed. It's been stuck in my head for the past few days.

I'm not exactly looking forward to the rest of the evening nor tomorrow. I'm not sleeping well--NyQuil knocked me out last night and will be my friend tonight as well. We have workers coming at the crack of dawn tomorrow and it's the last thing I want to deal with. We have to do some prep work and some straightening up for them and I just don't wanna but it's too late to cancel. Oh well--at least it will be done!

 

[Strings]

Hi Pearlie,

I hope you are feeling better today. At least you are looking at the bright side of things.

Take care of yourself,
Beth

 

[Mykelogan]

Hi Pearlieq!

Hahaha! I love the mountain climber game too!
Glad to hear you are feeling better!
Sorry to read that the 7th doesn't work for you for the WISH meet! I know you said you might be in Epcot on the 5th, I think I will still be there that day, if you're interested in getting to say hi. I am sure my timing is a bit more flexible as I am solo, so just let me know! Glad we're on the same team for the Biggest Loser too!

Have a happy & healthy night!
Mike

 

[pearlieq]

9/14/05

7:20am

--1 cup milk
--2 apple fritters

Not the best morning I've had. I barely got any sleep last night because of this &%!&$#*&^ cold, and the workers got here at 7am on the dot! I can sorta taste again this morning--enough to know that I'm getting rid of the rest of the apple fritters. They're not worth the calories.

We had quite the storm last night--tons of lightning! We've had to pull down all of our temorary shades so the workers can get at our windows, and I actually like the view--especially today with the trees turning and all.

**************************************
I'm honestly not quite sure what all I ate today. I know we had pizza for dinner and earlier we had pizza style Boca burgers and macaroni and cheese (can you tell DH cooked?). Otherwise, I know I ate a couple single pieces of cake I couldn't taste and I got into the apple fritters again before throwing them out. I remember a few pieces of cucumbers, but I think that might be it.

 

[eeyore25]

Hi!!!!!

Oh I hope you get to feeling better. I too have this stupid cold so I am in the same boat....no sleep, can't taste! It just plan sucks!!!!!!

Hope you are having a great Wednesday!

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning, Pearlieq!

Thank goodness you are getting your sense of taste back. That can be a real killer to weight loss.

Too bad we are not on the same team. Oh well, we can cheer each other on regardless.

I hope the workers get out of your house quickly. Enjoy the view while you can though and have a great day!

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning Pearlieq!

I hope you had a good day yesterday.

The weather around here is changing quickly isn't it? Hope that you have a great and magical day!

 

[pearlieq]

9/15/05

8:45am

--1 whole wheat bagel
--1 oz neufchatel cheese
--1 T grape jam

I slept a lot better last night--the cold is moving down to my chest which means it's on its way out. I'm getting a little less congested which meant more comfortable sleep and less waking up. I'm also getting a little of my energy back, which is nice as I have a sink full of dishes to tackle!

Magellan just climbed up on top of me for some kitty lovin'. He's so cute--when he decides it time to get petted he just climbs on up and plops all 12 pounds of himself right in my arms and stars purring. Diana's resting at the moment. Since her brother is so rambunctious she's made a point of finding all of the hidey holes in the house that fit her, but not him. She'll hang out there quietly when she's had enough of him, but every once in a while her little head will pop up, Laugh-In style, seemingly out of nowhere. It's so adorable! I can barely remember how boring our life must have been before we adopted them!

12:45pm

--2 boca burgers, no cheese
--5 cucumber slices
--1 plum

Still can't quite taste things, but it's getting clearer. I'm still feeling middling to fair, but I haven't quite dummed up much ambition yet. I'm currently watching The 40 Greatest Reality TV Moments on VH1, so, you know, I'm making good use of the time God gave me on this Earth...

2:00pm

--3 graham crackers

I've managed to successfully outsmart myself. I've been trolling for junk food all afternoon and this is the best I've found. As frustrating as it is at times, I really am glad I don't keep junk in the house.

I may or may not get a snack this afternoon, depending on how long DH is going to be. I managed to tackle the dishes and changing the water filter in the fridge. I'm making chili cheese burritos tonight, so I'm looking forward to that. I make them with 6" whole wheat tortillas, stuffed with 1oz of neufchatel cheese and low-fat chili. I roll them all up and put them in a pie pan, spoon a little salsa over them, and sprinkle some 2% cheddar cheese on top. About 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven and they're nice and gooey!

I think I'm also going to put in a batch of oatmeal cookie bars. I've really been craving oatmeal cookies and I found a bar cookie version that looks tasty. It calls for 1 cup of sugar, but I'm going to use 2/3 cup Splenda and 1/3 cup brown sugar instead. That almost always works out. It also calls for self-rising flour, but all I've got is AP. Oh well, I'm sure they'll taste as good even if they're a little flat.

I've got some cooking to do tomorrow as well. I'm going to be bringing a pasta salad to my grandma's birthday party. I'm going to use gemelli pasta, peas, garbanzo beans, cucumber, water chestnuts, mandarin oranges, baby carrot coins, and maybe some chopped seeded grape tomatoes. I'm going to toss all of that with Panera's poppyseed dressing and let the flavors combine overnight. It should be yummy! I also need to bring a low sugar dessert for DH. I've got a low carb blueberry muffin mix. I'm going to add a couple of mashed bananas and some lowfat yogurt in place of the oil/water in the recipe--hopefully the result is moist banana-blueberry muffins.

A few weeks back I signed up for a vegetarian starter kit from PETA. I had hoped it would be some recipes, meal suggestions, and notes about nutrition. It arrived today and was all of that, but with a healthy dose of gruesome, scary propoganda added in. This packet was advertised as a general help to people who were thinking about becoming vegetarians--I don't think most people would be expecting this. I've seen a lot of this material before and I found it very off-putting. I'm just not sure if this is really the way to advance their ideals.

I don't know how I feel about PETA. They seem to have gone so far to the extremes that it's hard to relate anymore. They don't seem to have a very good reputation. When I mention PETA people tend to roll their eyes and a lot of the people I speak to think they exaggerate or outright lie about the cruelty/conditions they report. I can't imagine there's anything untrue about the spirit of what they report--details may have varying degrees of accuracy, but I do believe that conditions for farm and entertainment animals are inexcusable. I wonder if it makes people feel better to discredit PETA, if it makes it a little easier to stay in denial about how their hamburger came to be. Unfortunately I think that PETA plays right into that and makes it very easy for people to dismiss them as frothy-mouthed lunatics.

I have had some awkward conversations since converting. Most people want to know why I changed, and the conversation inevitably comes up over meals. I haven't found a graceful way of explaining that I converted for ethical reasons to a person who's tucking into a steak just across the table. I don't want to come off as judgemental, but I don't want to lie about what I believe either. I suppose I'll get better at handling it over time.

6:15pm

--2 chili cheese burritos
--1/2 sm can tropical fruit salad
--1 cup nsa ice cream w/raspberry syrup

8:30pm

--1 ww bagel with margarine & jelly on half
--3 oatmeal cookie squares

10:00pm

--3 more oatmeal cookie squares

So, the good news is that the oatmeal cookie squares are great. The bad news is that I'm very very munchy tonight and between DH and I 1/2 of the 13x9 pan is gone! I may pull out a couple to send with him tomorrow and then pop the rest in the freezer. Of course, I'm sad to admit that doesn't always stop me, but it's a start, right?

You know what's also kind of sad--this is the least tragic day I've had in a while. I really want to try to get a walk in tomorrow--this is so my kind of weather! I wanted to go today but just as I made up my mind to do it the rain started!

 

[rcyannacci]

Hey! Aren't colds just the worst? Glad to hear your energy is coming back.

BTW- I was inspired by your baking! Last weekend I baked cookies and muffins for a bake sale my friend was organizing for the Humane Society. Apparently peanut butter cookies with chocolate kisses on top are a favorite of college students...who knew?

Hope you are feeling better soon!

 

[Strings]

Hi Pearlie,

I am glad to hear that you are feeling better. Keep the fluids going and rest. TLC from your furbabies helps too.

Take care,
Beth

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi pearlieq!

I hope you are feeling better today! Sounds like that cold is almost gone.

Have a great weekend!

 

[goldcupmom]

Mornin', Pearlie!

Hope you are feeling a bit better!

Price is right mountain climber .....my FAV game at the Casino! They have a nickel machine of this and its about the only one I play.

Your oatmeal bars sound delish! Does the 2/3 splenda 1/3 brown work for most things? Sounds interesting.

Have a great weekend!

 

[pearlieq]

9/16/05

8:30am

--1 whole wheat bagel
--1 oz neufchatel cheese
--3 oatmeal squares

Oh dear--I really need to get myself to stop with the oatmeal squares, although I was thinking that if I replaced some of the white flour with whole wheat, used applesauce instead of some of the margarine, and maybe took the splenda/sugar ratio down to 3/4 and 1/4 of a cup, these would actually passably healthy as a breakfast bar. I may have to play around with that a bit.

Feeling much better today--I feel like I'm "back". I still have a bit of congestion and a slight cough, but I was able to sleep through the night and I can breathe through my nose, so I'm happy with that. I think I'll try a gentle walk this morning. I'm scared to try Curves until this stuff in my chest clears up because of the athsma problem I had a few weeks ago. Plus, I'm really looking forward to getting out and enjoying this fall air! Depending on the weather and our schedule, DH and I might take in a high school football game tonight--another fun fall tradition!

To your question, Julie, blending Splenda with brown sugar (or white depending on the recipe) usually works very well. I've done a lot of baking using 100% Splenda, and the foods usually turn out OK, but they stay very pale and sometimes lose moisture. I've found that adding back in 1/4 or 1/3 of the sugar makes the food brown much more nicely and helps it rise and stay a bit more moist. I know Splenda put out their Splenda Blend for Baking which is supposed to be 50/50 Splenda and sugar, but I've found it's really expensive and that I can cut the sugar more than that and still get good results!

12:30pm

--2 boca burgers, no cheese
--1 cup baby carrots
--2 T hummus
--1 apple

I had a lovely walk this morning--it felt so good to get back out again!

5:00pm

--1/2 cup panda puffs
--1 100 cal bag popcorn
--3 oatmeal squares

That's it for the oatmeal squares! The rest are for DH! I had a pretty good day, my breakfast and lunch both stuck with me for a long time. I did get kind of snacky while waiting for DH to come home.

I got the pasta salad made for tomorrow--it's very colorful. The muffins are done, and I'm sure we'll be testing them later on as well. They really do smell good and are both low fat and low sugar. Yay!

I went to local market today because they had some great sales in their circular. It's a Centrella store, if anyone has one by them. In the land of Dominicks/Jewel, I found it downright charming. I reminded me of my childhood. There was a great deal of ethnic product, which was really neat, and the prices were really good--equivalent to Dom/Jewel "sale" prices--not a great sale, but an average sale where I would buy what I needed, but not stock up. I could see going back there, maybe once or twice a month. Unfortunatley I couldn't use them for my everyday shopping because they really don't carry organics and veggie products, with the exception of a very well stocked Boca/Morningstar section and they don't carry many SKUs in general, so a lot of the obscure products I use are not there. Still, I very much enjoyed the experience.

Where I was going before I got off on that tangent was that I picked up some tater tots when I went shopping today. It's been years since I've had a tater tot but I had the strangest jones for one the other day. I had been planning on making roasted potatoes with dinner tonight, but I made the deal with myself that if I gave up the can of Pringles I was going to buy I could have the tater tots. We'll see how they are!

6:45pm

--3 egg omelet w/2% cheddar and Bacos
--18 tater tots w/ketchup

The tater tots are amazing!!! I got the onion flavored and they taste like little mini potato pancakes. I may have to try some with applesauce later!

I can definitely see the Bacos need a light hand. I put way too many on the omelet and wound up scraping them back off. Too crunchy and too much imitation smoke flavor. Less is more with these!

DH is out mowing the lawn and I'm sitting in here feeling guilty. It's funny--I don't feel bad when I'm doing the shopping, cooking, dishes, laundry, etc., but I still feel guilty to have him working and me not. It's getting pretty dark, so I imagine he'll be back in soon. I love fall but I'm already missing those nights when it was still light out at 8:30!

8:00pm

--1 low sugar/low fat banana blueberry muffin

These turned out great! They're really moist and flavorful--as good as any full fat/calorie muffin I've had! It was hard to stop at one, but I did...

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning, Pearlieq!

It is so good that the cold is moving on. If graham crackers is all the junk you could find then good for you! Take that as a victory. The fact that you are keeping your cupboards better stocked is great!

It is too bad that you have to explain your meal choices to others. I think people should just accept that you are eating different and move on. I wonder if they think you will think less of them for continuing to eat meat. Maybe that is where some of the awkwardness comes from.

Hope you have a good day and can get that walk in.

 

[lillygator]

Hi! - a HS football sounds like a blast - I always enjoy them...hope you have a great weekend and get rid of all the sickies once and for all!

 

[Mykelogan]

Hi Pearlieq!

I am with you, I miss the night time light!!!
Tater Tots! What fun!! Hehe I have not had them in years! And you did so well bargaining with yourself to fit them in, great job!! Thanks for sharing the Splenda tips too, great to see them.

Glad you are feeling better! Hope you can get back to working out soon too... the team needs ya healthy! hehe

Have a great night!
Mike

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning, Pearlieq!

Glad to see you got your walk in. Sounds like you are having fun experimenting with the baking....and with the tasting. Just remember, everything in moderation.

If you liked the Centrella, you will probably like ours. It is like the small stores of days gone by and not a large selection of any one category, but we try to keep up on the best selling items. Sometimes it drives me nuts that I can't get some of what we call "specialty" items because we just can't turn it over quick enough, BUT considering all the different quick fix foods they have out there, I am kind of glad we can't or I might really be in trouble with this journey.

I hope you have fun at the party. Keep up the good work and have a great day!